


Silhouetted Leaf

by FallenWren



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Chance Meetings, Fall colors, First Meeting, M/M, University Students, Whimsical, a cold fall day, basically fluff, harry is a hipster, louis is an artist, mittens and gloves, pointy brown boots, sort of
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-09
Updated: 2015-11-09
Packaged: 2018-04-30 18:06:05
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,075
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5173946
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FallenWren/pseuds/FallenWren
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A leaf, frozen in midair, silhouetted against the blue sky.  But a leaf does not just remain aloft in the air.  It is the nature of a leaf to drift down slowly, borne here and there according to the whims of the wind.  </p>
<p>This leaf though was not alone.</p>
<p>It was held in the hand of a tall, gangly legged, curly haired boy.  He was standing in the middle of the park, mittened hand holding the leaf above his head, a faint smile turning up his mouth as he studied the leaf in his outstretched hand.</p>
<p>And Louis wanted to know him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Silhouetted Leaf

A leaf, frozen in midair, silhouetted against the blue sky.  But a leaf does not just remain aloft in the air.  It is the nature of a leaf to drift down slowly, borne here and there according to the whims of the wind.  

This leaf though was not alone.

It was held in the hand of a tall, gangly legged, curly haired boy.  He was standing in the middle of the park, mittened hand holding the leaf above his head, a faint smile turning up his mouth as he studied the leaf in his outstretched hand.

Louis wasn’t sure why the boy was standing in the middle of the park holding a leaf into the air, but he was sure that it was one of the most beautiful things he had ever seen.

The blue sky, the grey wool of the boy’s coat, the red and gold brilliance of the leaf.  It all combined to make an image that Louis was not just content to view from afar.  Louis loved art, and this boy and his leaf were a masterpiece.

It would be wrong to keep walking without examining the technique used to paint this picture.

As Louis approached from across the park, the boy started spinning in a slow circle, feet crunching in the fall leaves, grinding to dust the leaves that had already lost their color.  His grey coat swirled out from his sides, and the leaf remained silhouetted against the sky, turning even more golden every time the sun was directly behind it.

This must have been the intent of the boy because he stopped with the sun right behind the leaf, pointer finger of his free hand tracing the veins that were revealed by the sun’s bright rays.  If he heard Louis approaching he made no indication of it.

Louis stopped walking when he was about ten feet away.

“Nice leaf you’ve got there.”

The boy startled, hand letting go of the leaf in his shock.

Released now, the leaf was free to follow the whims of the wind, and it did so, drifting gently to land right at Louis’ feet.  He bent down to pick it up, careful fingers grasping the stem.  

And it was a beautiful leaf, red in the middle, a fiery soul, with gold feathering out from the middle, gathering at the edges.  A phoenix of a leaf.

“It looks like a phoenix.”  Louis found himself saying, not really sure where the words were coming from.

The boy smiled now, and he had dimples, and really, was that even fair?

“Yes, it does.”  The boy said, and his voice was deep and warm, like hot chocolate on a cold day.

“You have a voice like hot chocolate.” And god, Louis really needed to stop saying things out loud.

But the boy just laughed, head thrown back, eyes crinkled.  “Thank you.  That’s the best compliment I’ve received in ages.”  The boy paused for a moment, head tilted as though he were thinking.  “Your voice needs a lovely metaphor as well.  Say something more.”

Louis thought for a moment.  “I love art, and you look like a masterpiece.”

The boy smiled again and hummed.  “Your voice is a sun-shower in the summer.”  Then he nodded a bit as though he only believed it were true after he had uttered the words.

“Winter and summer.”  Louis said, looking into the blue-green eyes of the boy and seeing a snowstorm.

“Of course,” the boy said.  “It couldn’t possibly be anything different.”

“And fall, an unlikely meeting place.”

“But brilliant of color.” the boy said.

“Yes, the reds and golds, like a phoenix.”  And reminded, Louis took a step forward, holding out the leaf. “I believe that this belongs to you.”

“No.” the boy shook his head.  “It’s yours now.”  He took a step towards Louis, and wrapped his own mittened hand around Louis’.  “It chose you.”

Louis nodded.  That made sense.  “Okay,” he agreed easily.  “But only if you hold on to it for me.”  Louis turned the hand that was still enclosed within the boy’s and pressed the stem into his palm.  “You complement each other.”

The boy curled his fingers around the leaf and took his hand out of Louis’.  “I will look after it for you,” he said solemnly.  “But it is _your_ leaf now.”

“Alright.”

The boy held out the hand that wasn’t holding the leaf, his left hand.  “I’m Harry.”

Louis grasped Harry’s hand with his own left hand. “I’m Louis.”

“Louis.” Harry said, lips curling around the name.  “You have a good name.”

“I rather like yours as well, Harry.”  

“Why, thank you. I am quite fond of it.”

“A good name to be fond of.”

Harry looked down at his pointed brown boots for a moment, and then looked up.  “Would you like to see something?”  Tentative, but unnecessarily so.

“Of course.”

Harry pushed a few stray curls back into his hat, giving Louis a discerning look.  “Okay, but it’s a secret.”

“I can keep a secret.” Louis assured him, holding out a pinky.  His left pinky.

Harry accepted this promise, linking his own pinky with Louis’.

Harry then held the leaf up to the sky, the same exact position as before.  “Come, stand next to me.”

Louis moved a step closer, still looking up at the leaf.

Harry let out a breath of impatience, and used his free hand to grab Louis’ coat, yanking him closer with a sharp movement. Louis stumbled into Harry’s side, and Harry put his hand around his back, fingers curling around his shoulder.

“There was no way you could see from way over there.” Harry explained.

Louis thought it best not to argue, especially since he did not mind their new position.  Harry was warm.

“Alright, what are we looking at?”  Louis asked.

“The leaf.” Harry stated.

Louis looked up at the leaf.  It was silhouetted against the blue sky again, sun shining through.  And then Louis looked to his right, to the boy standing next to him.

“The leaf, Louis, look at the leaf.”  Harry said.

“Okay, I’m looking.  What should I see?”  

Harry paused for moment, the wind gusted and more leaves came swirling to the ground.  

“It looks like the future. And it belongs to you, if you want it.”

And then Harry turned his head.  And Louis turned his head.  Their eyes met.  Summer and winter meeting in the fall.

And Harry kissed him.


End file.
